THE BIG CHILL

Tuesday 26th July

It may have become cold with the icy blast from the Antarctic sweeping up the country but I had a warm glow inside after today's flights.  Yes, I said flights - plural!

After the awful weather for VFR flying over the past week or so I had my fingers crossed pretty tightly for today as I had plans to take C172 "WAM" from Hamilton to Tauranga, go up with Classic Flyers instructor Pete in either the Super Cub or the Stearman and then fly WAM back to Hamilton.  As it turned out, things went pretty much to plan.

The weather forecast for today had looked somewhat dodgy up until last night's 6 o'clock news which gave a good forecast for the Waikato and Bay of Plenty areas, but (isn't there always a but) with the clearing skies the night was to be cold and at 0730 this morning I logged onto IFIS and saw this ATIS for Hamilton:

HAMILTON (NZHN): ATIS NZHN C 1921 APCH: EXPECT VISUAL APPROACH RWY:  18L SFC COND: DRY WIND: VRB02 VIS:  50KM CLD:  NSC TEMPERATURE: M03 DEW POINT: M04 QNH:  1019 2000FT WIND: FORECAST 220/20= 

I shall translate for non aviation types: Automatic Terminal Information Service for Hamilton "Charlie" issued at 1921 UTC (7.21 am): Duty runway 18 left with conditions suitable for a visual approach, dry surface, variable wind at 2 knots, 50km visibility, no significant cloud (could see that looking out the upstairs windows at home), temperature -3C, dew point -4C; pressure 1019 hectopascals (or 30.09" mercury if you prefer)  2000' Wind 220º magnetic at 20 knots

So, it was cold (for Hamilton) but atmospheric pressure had risen considerably with the high moving over us during the night and it would be a quick flight outbound with the 20 knot wind more or less behind me.  And so it was.  I took my time preflighting, checking surfaces for frost or ice and then went back in to file a flight plan (and thaw out was Roger's comment).  I started up at about 0935 and was holding for 18 at 0950, cleared immediate take-off and was into the Tauranga circuit about 20 minutes later (estimated ground speed of around 135 knots).  It was smooth as silk at 3500' but as soon as I started to descend on the Northeast (lee) side of the Kaimais there was a fair amount of turbulence (as expected with the brisk Southwester).  WAM and I rode it out pretty well but I think any passengers would have been feeling a bit queasy!!  The turbulence was worse on the way back but smoothed out as soon as I was able to get above 3000'.
I parked up and stolled round to Classic Flyers to find instructor, Pete.  I noticed the Stearman had its oil tank heater plugged in and there was no sign of the Super Cub so was not too surprised when Pete announced we would be going up in the biplane as the cub was still in maintenance.  7ºC in an open cockpit - BRRR!  I donned a flight suit over my other two layers, did the usual walk around and once Pete was happy about the oil we got in and started up.  The radial started up at the second attempt after an extra prime and we taxied on idle round to hold for Grass 25.  There was a 10 minute pause while the oil temperature gauge slowly crept up from 15 to 40ºC then engine run-up and pre take-off checks and onto the runway and off to operate over Matakana Island.  

The first take-off was good and much easier than I recalled from my previous flights.  Maybe all that work in the Cub had paid off.  Once over Matakana Pete got me to do some medium and then steep turns which were all in the acceptable to good range so we headed back into the circuit.

It had been pretty cold at 1500' and was not any warmer down at circuit height (1000').  My thumbs were getting a little numb but the rest of me was fine.  We were cleared for a right hand downwind for 25 grass and, with a little coaching from the back I did a very nice approach and touch and go keeping straight with rudder and only a slight drift into the minor left to right cross wind on climb out.
Four left hand circuits followed with pretty good approaches, crabbing a little to the left into the wind on final giving an excellent (if a bit draughty) view of the runway and all my landings were three-pointers and only one slight bounce. There was a bit of a cough and splutter from the engine when I was a touch enthusiastic with the throttle on one touch and go (must remember that radials are very sensitive and need careful handling!).  After the last we taxied back to the hangar for a warm up and coffee (plus lunch for me) at the Avgas cafe. 

Pete's immediate comment was that it was all pretty good.  My rudder control on landing and takeoff was fine and no real negatives at all.  Nice warm glow inside for me - finally feel I am becoming competent on taildraggers.  Have booked for an action replay in two weeks.


And now a few photos...

Sun off the sea and glinting off the prop bottom right

Beautiful day at Tauranga Airport

That radial that needs a lot of "babying"

  ZK-SAQ - parked outside Classic Flyers and described by Pete as a "Scary-looking microlight"  Actually a  Fly Synthesis Storch S registered to Sport Aviation Corp, Hamilton.

Air Nelson Dash-8 ZK-NFA about to roll the wheels onto the concrete - note the cross-wind technique with the left (right as we look) wing and mainwheel down

BATTERIES!!!!

Saturday 16th July

Flat ones, that is.  I shall start at the beginning, though.
Our eldest daughter, Eleanor was up from Wellington for a long weekend (middle daughter's 21st) and, as she enjoys a flight with me, I had booked Archer III, WIT for the afternoon with the intention of going somewhere for an expensive coffee.  After all the terrible weather of the past week the probability of going up did not seem good.  However, Saturday started with a bit of fog which cleared by mid-morning and, with only light winds, it all looked good.  There was a front on its way later but the skies were clear at 1245 when we arrived at the club so I thought a quick hop over to Taraunga and back would be OK.
After pre-flighting WIT we got in, switched on and I pressed the primer button and didn't hear anything - hmmmm.....  Pushed the starter and the prop managed a turn of about 20º before all power died.  Oh dear!  I tried twice more with ever decreasing results so it was pretty clear the battery was as flat as the proverbial Shrove Tuesday food.
So, we unstrapped, got out and I strolled over to the club to report the problem.  A junior instructor and a student brought over the external starter pack and tried to connect it but, in spite of following the flight manual instructions could not get any juice to flow!  We unloaded our gear and changed over to UFS (an Archer II).  
We were now about an hour behind schedule and the front appeared to be on its way from the southwest so I cancelled our flight plan and decided a local scenic was the way to go.  We took a Scott (NE) departure and headed over to Morrinsville.  Looking over to the West the visibility was reducing significantly and so we headed back over to the city and got a North arrival clearance.  We had good views of flooded paddocks and broken river banks after all the rain - Eleanor took some video which I will try to get edited and posted sometime soon.
The airfield was quite busy with several aircraft in the circuit and a lot of radio traffic - I guess CTC were playing catch-up after a week of no-VFR weather.    It was a surprisingly uneventful approach, cleared to join right base for 18R (the short runway) and I did a pretty nice landing {Eleanor thought so and it is always good to impress the passenger(s)}.  The rain started soon afterwards but was very light and we could have been up for longer but you are almost never wrong if you take the option which looks safest!  At least we managed to get up in the air which, with the recent weather and then a near-totally dead battery, did not seem likely for a while.    

HALL OF FAME

I am a regular reader/follower of Flight Level 390, another flying blog by "Captain Dave", an American commercial pilot with a domestic airline whose posts are always a good read.  On his blog he has a "Hall of Fame" of his aviation "heroes" and, being an American, yes, they are all (or almost all) American.  Well, sorry to disappoint you, Dave, but there are/were famous flyers in other countries.  So, I shall reciprocate with a British/Commonwealth bias as I am a Pom (Englishman) living in NZ for the past 20-odd years.

The first addition is a New Zealander who, in other aviator's words:

"... could have lost the war in a single day or even an afternoon" (Johnnie Johnson)

"If any man won the Battle of Britain, he did..." (Lord Tedder)

"... the awesome responsibility for this country's survival rested squarely on (his) shoulders..." (Douglas Bader)

The man is, of course, Air Chief Marshall Sir Keith Park, who commanded 11 Group (as an Air Vice Marshall) in the South-east of England during the Battle of Britain.  After that victory, due to jealousy and RAF politics he was quite shabbily treated but, unlike those who sought to belittle him, it was his statue that adorned the fourth plinth at Trafalgar Square in London (in 2009) and is now permanently located at Waterloo Place since Battle of Britain Day, 2010.

A replica of his Hurricane, OK 1 is the gate guardian at the aviation section of MOTAT (Museum of Transport and Technology), Auckland, NZ.

The second aviator is Captain Joseph "Mutt" Summers, chief test pilot for Vickers-Armstrong and (after a V-A takeover) Supermarine.  As such, he was the first man to fly the Spitfire, 5th March 1936 - from Eastleigh, Hampshire (Supermarine's local field and my wife's home town).  He flew a record (for a test pilot) of 54 first flights and was instrumental in the initial test flying/dropping of the "Upkeep" bouncing bomb prior to the "Dambusters" raid.  You can "Google" why he got his nickname and, yes, it does have something to do with dog's habits!